Updated December 5th 2025: The five winners have been selected and notified.
Updated October 21st 2025: All semi-finalists for the Innovation Challenge have been selected and notified. Five winners will be selected and notified in early December.
Updated October 3rd 2025: no funding remains for this opportunity. During the Week of December 15: Winners of the Innovation Challenge will be announced.
Ripple — our long-time partner and champion of education — has engineered a bold new opportunity for students and teachers: The Ripple STEM Innovation Challenge. The five teachers with the most innovative projects will each receive a $100,000 DonorsChoose gift code, as chosen by our panel of expert judges.
To kick off the challenge, starting September 10th, Ripple is doubling any new donations to every eligible STEM project. That means a $20 donation will become a $40 donation, and so on.Â
How to qualify for the STEM match offer, while funds last
If your project meets the criteria below, new donations on your project will be doubled as long as funding remains. Once your project is approved and live on the site, you will see the match offer displayed on your project page.
- Create a project focused on STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering or Math. Select one of the subject areas within the STEM category. Please ensure accurate representation and select the corresponding subject area only if it aligns with your project.
How to submit a project for consideration to the Ripple STEM Innovation Challenge:
- If you submitted an eligible STEM project, it’s automatically entered in Ripple’s STEM Innovation Challenge! Please ensure your project is focused on STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering or Math. Select one of the subject areas within the STEM category. Please ensure accurate representation and select the corresponding subject area only if it aligns with your project.
- Submit your STEM project starting September 4th through October 5th.
- Note also that all eligible STEM projects already live on the site beginning on September 4th will also be automatically entered into the Innovation Challenge.
- Most projects that qualify for the Ripple STEM match offer are eligible; however Professional Development or Virtual Class or Visitor projects are not eligible.
Judging Criteria for the Innovation Challenge
| Winning projects should: | Limited | Good | Excellent | Exceptional |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Be innovative |
Idea is widely used in US schools (i.e. idea isn’t unique — you’d find it in the majority of classrooms) |
Idea is not commonly used in US schools (i.e. while this idea is creative, you’re likely to find it in most classrooms) |
Idea is creative and not commonly used in US schools (i.e. you’re unlikely to see this in most classrooms) |
Idea is creative, unconventional, and exciting (i.e. this is a fresh, original concept that brings STEM learning to life in an unexpected way) |
| Propose an idea that ignites students’ STEM curiosity through career exploration | Idea does not engage students in STEM career exploration | Idea touches on engaging students in STEM career exploration | Idea clearly illustrates how the teacher plans to engage students in STEM career exploration | Idea dives deeply into how the teacher plans to engage students in STEM career exploration |
| Engage students in a hands-on way |
Project is not hands-on or action-oriented (i.e. no student action is needed) |
Project is somewhat hands-on or action-oriented (i.e. minimal student action is needed to complete lesson/project goal) |
Project is mostly hands-on or action-oriented (i.e. lesson includes student action items or tasks) |
Project is hands-on or action-oriented (i.e. lesson is very hands-on and relies heavily on student action) |
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Frequently Asked Questions:
Click the buttons below to read the answers to each question, or use your spacebar after selecting your desired question.
Q: Is there a limit to how expensive my project can be to qualify for this match? â–Ľ
There is no limit to your project; however, we recommend that you keep your project’s total goal below $1,000. Smaller requests are likely to get funded quickly: projects under $200 have a 90% chance of being funded, while projects over $1,000 are funded only about 43% of the time.
Q: Are there any restrictions on which donations are doubled? â–Ľ
Credit card, PayPal, account credit, and gift card donations to live projects are eligible for this match. Donations via check and donor-advised fund (DAF) will not be doubled due to processing time. Previous donations placed before the match offer’s start time (9/10 @ 7am ET) will not be doubled. Please note, the match offer is not active for donations during Friends and Family Pre-Funding (the period when our team is reviewing projects).
Q: How can I edit my posted project? â–Ľ
If your project has not received any donations, you can make any edits by returning your project to draft status. You can do this by heading over to the Projects section of your account and clicking on the "Return project to draft" button underneath your project title. Once your project is in draft status, you can make any edits and resubmit it. Then, it will be re-screened by our team and re-posted if eligible. Read more about editing your project.
Q: How do I submit a project for the Ripple Innovation Challenge? â–Ľ
Professional Development and Virtual Class Trip or Visitor projects are excluded from the Innovation Challenge. Any other STEM projects will be eligible for this challenge and those submitted starting 9/4/25 and ending after 10/5/25. A teacher can have multiple projects qualify for the challenge.
Note also that all eligible STEM projects already live on the site beginning on September 4th will also be automatically entered into the Innovation Challenge.
The project that you submit for the Innovation Challenge does not need to have materials totaling $100,000.
Q: What is the timeline for the Ripple Innovation Challenge? â–Ľ
- September 4 - October 5th: Submissions are accepted.
- October 6: Submissions are no longer accepted. Judging kicks off (match will continue until funds are spent)
- October 6 - November 13: Judging continues.
- November 13 - December 1: Top 5 projects will be selected.
- Week of December 15: Winners will be announced.
Q: How are the winners selected for the Ripple STEM Innovation Challenge? â–Ľ
A panel of judges will be looking for innovative STEM projects that focus on exploration, discovery, and creative thinking. They will be making this determination using the following rubric:
| Winning projects should: | Limited | Good | Excellent | Exceptional |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Be innovative |
Idea is widely used in US schools (i.e. idea isn’t unique — you’d find it in the majority of classrooms) |
Idea is not commonly used in US schools (i.e. while this idea is creative, you’re likely to find it in most classrooms) |
Idea is creative and not commonly used in US schools (i.e. you’re unlikely to see this in most classrooms) |
Idea is creative, unconventional, and exciting (i.e. this is a fresh, original concept that brings STEM learning to life in an unexpected way) |
| Propose an idea that ignites students’ STEM curiosity through career exploration | Idea does not engage students in STEM career exploration | Idea touches on engaging students in STEM career exploration | Idea clearly illustrates how the teacher plans to engage students in STEM career exploration | Idea dives deeply into how the teacher plans to engage students in STEM career exploration |
| Engage students in a hands-on way |
Project is not hands-on or action-oriented (i.e. no student action is needed) |
Project is somewhat hands-on or action-oriented (i.e. minimal student action is needed to complete lesson/project goal) |
Project is mostly hands-on or action-oriented (i.e. lesson includes student action items or tasks) |
Project is hands-on or action-oriented (i.e. lesson is very hands-on and relies heavily on student action) |
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